Hi, I'm new to the site and am looking at a 97 cherokee country that has 140,000 miles.

But the problem is that sometimes after it rains the dash flatlines until he hits the rear defrost button then everything works again.

Anyone heard of this happening?

Thanks: Steve

 

Sound like condensation on the window seal.

Safelite repair! Safelite replace!

 

Stop looking and run away.

 

Is it that bad

 

That's the problem. If it's water getting in there, you won't know how bad it is until it's too late.
Might be a simple fix, or might be years of accumulated moisture has corroded everything electrical, making for a travelling circus of intermittents.
Then there's the possibility of rust in all the wrong, hard-to-repair places.

Unless you are getting an unbelievable deal and can afford to roll the dice, why?

 

It's bone stock for $1100 if that's a good deal.

 

It's about what they're going for up here too. Check to see if there's rocker and floor pan rust, BTW. Surprising how quickly they rot away in the Midwest.

I wish I had some better ideas on where to look for the electrical problem, but I don't. I'm just scratching my head.
Something somewhere is getting water in it. I'm wondering if the cowl/windshield area is leaking with water getting under the dash.
Might take a good hard look for signs of water entry under there.

If your troubleshooting skills are pretty good, and it's the best Cherokee deal you can find, it might be workable. But it's still taking a gamble unless you can find the problem before forking over the cash.

 

I'm starting to think it's not such a good deal I don't really wanna drive 2 hours one way to take that big of a gamble.

Here it is http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/cto/3045239577.html

 

Probably best to keep looking then. Seems there's a new one for sale every few days on Craigslist..no reason you shouldn't be picky.